So, by Wednesday we'll have a fair idea of who will have new bits'n'bobs on their cars this weekend, and by Sunday we'll know who completed race distance first (red flags not withstanding) and is, pending any decisions from the stewards, the winner!

Carry on.

Edit: Yes, this IS the official thread. Have one for each day of track action if you insist, but until Friday, this is the only place to be.

Certainly if the diffusor crew have to revert to a standard diffusor, then Webber and Vettel could pounce. However, Ferrari, especially Kimi Raikkonen held back a faster Red Bull at Malaysia so anything is possible for KERS teams.

What does it mean?The "official" thread is under the surveilance of the Mighty "Moderators" and the pirate thrread not?So maybe here we can slate the drivers/fanboys at will? ...I'm just kidding, dunk...

Originally posted by TickTickBooom Well, we could be discussing the weather but someone else seems to have started a thread especially for it.

Lets talk strategy.

I think Barrichello should go light and aggressive and prevent Button from running away with it. Judging by the few dry laps in clean air Button had in Sepang, the Brawn are much faster than anyone else, which should make it easy for a light Barrichello to open a big gap in a shorter first stint. If he's lucky to have another Alonso-train formed, he might even pit from the lead are return from 3rd or 4th. The problem would be creating a gap big enough to still be ahead of Button once the first round of pit stops is over, but that's what Barrichello is paid to do.

If the diffusors are found to be illegal tomorrow, will the DD diffusor teams be allowed to continue with them for China, or will they be expected to change their cars in the two days and with the bits the put on the containers weeks ago?

Originally posted by smartie_f1 If the diffusors are found to be illegal tomorrow, will the DD diffusor teams be allowed to continue with them for China, or will they be expected to change their cars in the two days and with the bits the put on the containers weeks ago?

If they are found illegal they will have to change them by China. More likely there will be a rule clarification if anything happens then they will probably have to change by Barca.

I think Barrichello should go light and aggressive and prevent Button from running away with it. Judging by the few dry laps in clean air Button had in Sepang, the Brawn are much faster than anyone else, which should make it easy for a light Barrichello to open a big gap in a shorter first stint. If he's lucky to have another Alonso-train formed, he might even pit from the lead are return from 3rd or 4th. The problem would be creating a gap big enough to still be ahead of Button once the first round of pit stops is over, but that's what Barrichello is paid to do.

I agree with your opinion but as a die-hard Jenson fan, I don't want Rubens to run away with it.

I wonder exactly how much lighter Rubens would have to go. Too much and he risks losing out to the heavier Jenson in the first round of pit-stops, not enough and Jenson could well take him at the start or in the first few laps, as he seems to be able to wring more speed out of the Brawn anyway.

I think Barrichello should go light and aggressive and prevent Button from running away with it. Judging by the few dry laps in clean air Button had in Sepang, the Brawn are much faster than anyone else, which should make it easy for a light Barrichello to open a big gap in a shorter first stint. If he's lucky to have another Alonso-train formed, he might even pit from the lead are return from 3rd or 4th. The problem would be creating a gap big enough to still be ahead of Button once the first round of pit stops is over, but that's what Barrichello is paid to do.

I agree. Unless he has figured out where he's losing to Jenson in speed, he has to gamble on this strategy and hope that someone gets the jump on Button as he rockets out to the lead. Otherwise he might have Button staying surprisingly close to him with a heavier car and emerging well clear after the first stops.

But there's no other way to do it if he's not as quick. If he runs heavy he runs the risk of falling behind the KERS cars early and losing massive amounts of time. And even if he takes second at the start Jenson would likely build up a big lead with a lighter car. All, of course, assuming that Button's apparent speed advantage holds.

Originally posted by TickTickBooom I agree with your opinion but as a die-hard Jenson fan, I don't want Rubens to run away with it.

I wonder exactly how much lighter Rubens would have to go. Too much and he risks losing out to the heavier Jenson in the first round of pit-stops, not enough and Jenson could well take him at the start or in the first few laps, as he seems to be able to wring more speed out of the Brawn anyway.

I can't agree with that. I think Jenson would own his ass if he went with any less than a five lap fuel advantage, and even then Jenson would still have a really good chance to put in some flyers before his pit-stop and take the place.

But a lot of this comes down to driver preferences and personal belief. Sure, I'd like to see Rubens win a race this season, but even more is my desire to see Jenson lengthen his lead in the WDC standings.

Originally posted by TickTickBooom Aha! I do believe I've succeeded this time!

So, by Wednesday we'll have a fair idea of who will have new bits'n'bobs on their cars this weekend, and by Sunday we'll know who completed race distance first (red flags not withstanding) and is, pending any decisions from the stewards, the winner!

Carry on.

Edit: Yes, this IS the official thread. Have one for each day of track action if you insist, but until Friday, this is the only place to be.

Is doesnt say "official" in the title, someone is going to trump you.;)

I can't agree with that. I think Jenson would own his ass if he went with any less than a five lap fuel advantage, and even then Jenson would still have a really good chance to put in some flyers before his pit-stop and take the place.

But a lot of this comes down to driver preferences and personal belief. Sure, I'd like to see Rubens win a race this season, but even more is my desire to see Jenson lengthen his lead in the WDC standings.

I was just guesstimating. 2 laps will only do if he really makes the most of it on every lap.

The Toyota should go light too. They need that elusive first win very bad, and they should take it no matter what, even if it means one driver very light and the other prposefully holding the field to let the other run away. I mean, if they can't win now while the usual suspects (McLaren, Ferrari, Alonso) are trailing behind, they never will.